Exploring pre-service teachers’ AI ethics and application strategies in a generative AI-supported knowledge-building community
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21631997 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Yuyao Tong (0000-0002-9482-0725, Guangzhou University), Jingmin Miao (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-18 |
| Publication date | 2026-07-06 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Interactive Learning Environments (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1049-4820 • E-ISSN: 1744-5191 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/10494820.2026.2690473 |
| OpenAlex | W7167584409 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 33 |
With the rapid development of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) and its applications in teacher education, it is essential to understand pre-service teachers’ perceptions and strategies for using GenAI and to explore their learning about AI ethics from an epistemological perspective. This involves integrating GenAI as a non-human epistemic agent into knowledge-building environments with a focus on human-AI collaboration. The participants were 22 pre-service teachers. Using a case study approach, we examined how pre-service teachers engaged with the benefits and limitations of GenAI and the strategies they adopted when using it in a knowledge-building environment. Thematic analysis also found three ethical reasoning patterns, including critical use of GenAI, algorithmic aversion, and cognitive offloading, during pre-service teachers’ AI ethics learning process. The findings highlight an epistemological tension that arises when GenAI participates as a non-human epistemic agent during the knowledge-building process. Based on these findings, we propose a professional development program to help pre-service teachers design and implement GenAI in knowledge-building teaching practice. The study has implications for educators, engineers, and policymakers seeking to design and integrate GenAI effectively and ethically in the AI-supported knowledge era
Cognition · Experiential learning · Generative grammar · Information ethics · Perception · Thematic analysis · Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education · Ethics and Social Impacts of AI · Intelligent Tutoring Systems and Adaptive Learning
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Weighted kappa
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |